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courtesy of ‘Chris Rief aka Spodie Odie’

Since 1971, National Public Radio has fallen back on the acronym “NPR” as a shorthand for its lengthy, official name. As of today, the truncated version will be the only thing left, as the District-based organization is ditching the long moniker.

All things considered, this isn’t that much of a change beyond nomenclature, but there is some rationale in the decision. NPR has jumped head first into several digital channels, dominating the podcast landscape and trying its best to build as many useful smart phone apps as possible – translation, it’s about a lot more than just radio these days. Paraphrasing from NPR’s CEO, this change is meant to mirror the efforts and help NPR become more streamlined and more in touch with the speed of media.

For the NPR fans out there, here’s one more treat from the “trying to be more in touch with the digital generation” that NPR did earlier this summer. Enjoy as All Things D and NPR’s personalities embrace several Internet memes from the last few months:

Dave Levy

Dave Levy is a PR guy by day, a media researcher on the side and a self-proclaimed geek. He blogs often about how traditional media adapts – or tries to adapt – to the growing digital media world at State of the Fourth Estate. You can follow Dave on Twitter for various updates about everything from sports from his previous home in Boston to eccentric and obscure pop culture references. Read why Dave loves D.C.